1.The competent authorities of Member States shall communicate to each other all information regarding:
(a)measures taken to implement this Regulation:
(b)changes in their legislation which are likely to affect the implementation of this Regulation.
2.For the purposes of implementing this Regulation, the authorities and institutions of Member States shall lend their good offices and act as though implementing their own legislation. The administrative assistance furnished by the said authorities and institutions shall, as a rule, be free of charge. However, the competent authorities of the Member States may agree to certain expenses being reimbursed.
3.The authorities and institutions of Member States may, for the purpose of implementing this Regulation, communicate directly with one another and with the persons concerned or their representatives.
4.The authorities, institutions and tribunals of one Member State may not reject claims or other documents submitted to them on the grounds that they are written in an official language of another Member State. They shall have recourse where appropriate to the provisions of Article 81 (b).
5.(a)Where, under this Regulation or under the implementing Regulation referred to in Article 98, the authorities or institutions of a Member State communicate personal data to the authorities or institutions of another Member State, that communication shall be subject to the legal provisions governing protection of data laid downby the Member State providing the data.
Any subsequent transmission as well as the storage, alteration and destruction of the data shall be subject to the provisions of the legislationon data protectionof the receiving Member State.
(b)The use of personal data for purposes other than those of social security shall be subject to the approval of the person concerned or in accordance with the other guarantees provided for by national legislation.
1. The institutions and persons covered by this Regulation shall have a duty of mutual information and cooperation to ensure the correct implementation of this Regulation.
The institutions, in accordance with the principle of good administration, shall respond to all queries within a reasonable period of time and shall in this connection provide the persons concerned with any information required for exercising the rights conferred on them by this Regulation.
The persons concerned shall inform the institutions of the competent State and of the State of residence as soon as possible of any changes in their personal or family situation which affect their right to benefits under this Regulation.
2. Failure to respect the obligation of information referred to in paragraph 1, third subparagraph, may result in the application of proportionate measures in accordance with national law. Nevertheless, these measures shall be equivalent to those applicable to similar situations under domestic law and shall not make it impossible or excessively difficult in practice for claimants to exercise the rights conferred on them by this Regulation.
3. In the event of difficulties in the interpretation or application of this Regulation which could jeopardise the rights of a person covered by it, the institution of the competent State or of the State of residence of the person involved shall contact the institution(s) of the Member State(s) concerned. If a solution cannot be found within a reasonable period, the authorities concerned may call on the Administrative Commission to intervene.]
Textual Amendments
F1 Inserted by Regulation (EC) No 631/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004 amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71 on the application of social security schemes to employed persons, to self-employed persons and to members of their families moving within the Community, and Council Regulation (EEC) No 574/72 laying down the procedure for implementing Regulation (EEC) No 1408/71, in respect of the alignment of rights and the simplification of procedures (Text with relevance for the EEA and for Switzerland).
1.Any exemption from or reduction of taxes, stamp duty, notarial or registration fees provided for in the legislation of one Member State in respect of certificates or documents required to be produced for the purposes of the legislation of that State shall be extended to similar documents required to be produced for the purposes of the legislation of another Member State or of this Regulation.
2.All statements, documents and certificates of any kind whatsoever required to be produced for the purposes of this Regulation shall be exempt from authentication by diplomatic or consular authorities.
[F23. An electronic message sent by an institution in conformity with the provisions of this Regulation and the implementing Regulation may not be rejected by any authority or institution of another Member State on the grounds that it was received by electronic means, once the receiving institution has declared its ability to receive electronic messages. Reproduction and recording of such messages shall be presumed to be a correct and accurate reproduction of the original document or recording of the information it relates to, unless there is proof to the contrary.
An electronic message shall be considered valid if the computer system on which the message is recorded contains the safeguards necessary in order to avoid any alteration, disclosure or access to the recording. It shall at any time be possible to reproduce the information recorded in a directly legible form. When an electronic message is transferred from one social security institution to another, appropriate security measures shall be taken in accordance with the relevant Community provisions.]
Textual Amendments
F2 Inserted by Council Regulation (EC) No 1290/97 of 27 June 1997.
1.Any claim, declaration or appeal which should have been submitted, inorder to comply with the legislation of one Member State, within a specified period to an authority, institution or tribunal of that State shall be admissible if it is submitted withinthe same period to a corresponding authority, institution or tribunal of another Member State. In such a case the authority, institution, or tribunal receiving the claim, declaration or appeal shall forward it without delay to the competent authority, institution or tribunal of the former State either directly or through the competent authorities of the Member State concerned. The date on which such claims, declarations or appeals were submitted to the authority, institution or tribunal of theSecond State shall be considered as the date of their submission to the competent authority, institution or tribunal.
2.Where a person entitled to do so under the legislation of a Member State has submitted to that State a claim for family benefits even though that State is not competent by priority right, the date on which that first applicationwas made shall be considered as the date on which it was submitted to the competent authority, institution or tribunal, provided that a new application is submitted in the Member State which is competent by priority right by a person entitled to do so under the legislation of that State. The second application must be submitted within a period of one year after notification of the rejectionof the first application or the cessation of payment of benefits in the first Member State.
1.Medical examinations provided for by the legislation of one Member State may be carried out at the request of the competent institution, in the territory of another Member State, by the institution of the place of stay or residence of the person entitled to benefits, under conditions laid down in the implementing Regulation referred to in Article 98 or, failing these, under conditions agreed upon between the competent authorities of the Member States concerned.
2.Medical examinations carried out under the conditions laid down in paragraph 1 shall be considered as having been carried out in the territory of the competent State.
Where appropriate, money transfers effected in accordance with this Regulation shall be made in accordance with the relevant agreements in force between the Member States concerned at the time of transfer. Where no such agreements are in force between two Member States, the competent authorities of the said States or the authorities responsible for international payments shall, by mutual agreement, determine the measures necessary for effecting such transfers.
Special procedures for implementing the legislations of certain Member States are set out in Annex VI.
. . . . . .
An employer shall not be bound to pay increased contributions by reason of the fact that his place of business or the registered office or place of business of his undertaking is in the territory of a Member State other than the competent State.
1.Contributions payable to an institution of one Member State may be collected in the territory of another Member State in accordance with the administrative procedure and with the guarantees and privileges applicable to the collection of contributions payable to the corresponding institution of the latter State.
2.The procedure for the implementation of the provisions of paragraph 1 shall be governed, in so far as is necessary, by the implementing Regulation referred to in Article 98 or by means of agreements between Member States. Such implementing procedures may also cover procedures for enforcing payment.
1.If a person receives benefits under the legislation of one Member State in respect of an injury resulting from an occurrence in the territory of another State, any rights of the institution responsible for benefits against a third party bound to compensate for the injury shall be governed by the following rules:
(a)Where the institution responsible for benefits is, by virtue of the legislation which it administers, subrogated to the rights which the recipient has against the third party, such subrogation shall be recognized by each Member State.
(b)Where the said institution has direct rights against the third party, such rights shall be recognized by each Member State.
2.If a person receives benefits under the legislation of one Member State in respect of an injury resulting from an occurrence in the territory of another Member State, the provisions of the said legislation which determine in which cases the civil liability of employers or of the persons employed by them is to be excluded shall apply with regard to the said person or to the competent institution.
The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also apply to any rights of the institution responsible for benefit against an employer or the persons employed by him in cases where their liability is not excluded.
3.Where, in accordance with the provisions of Article 36 (3) and/or Article 63 (3), two or more Member States or the competent authorities of those States have concluded an agreement to waive reimbursement between institutions under their jurisdiction, any rights arising against a liable third party shall be governed by the following rules:
(a)Where the institution of the Member State of stay or residence awards benefits to a person in respect of an injury which was sustained within its territory, that institution, in accordance with the legislation which it administers, shall exercise the right to subrogation or direct action against the third party liable to provide compensation for the injury.
(b)For the purpose of implementing (a):
the person receiving benefits shall be deemed to be insured with the institution of the place of stay or residence,
and
that institution shall be deemed to be the debtor institution.
(c)The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall remain applicable in respect of any benefits not covered by the waiver agreement referred to in this paragraph.